Optimism Rises Among CCVO Members

by David Mitchell, President & CEO, Calgary Chamber of Voluntary Organizations

Thank you to all the executive leaders who responded to the members’ survey I conducted over the summer. The strong response rate (36%) provided valuable feedback and rich insights on CCVO’s work. Many helpful and instructive suggestions were offered, giving much food for thought to a new CEO who’s aiming to sharpen our focus!

Below is a summary of the results we received.

One of the more noteworthy results was the response of leaders to the question on optimism about their organization’s ability to thrive in the year ahead. While a few respondents weren’t optimistic at all, a strong and convincing majority expressed real confidence in the near-term future. This may seem surprising and even counter-intuitive, as we have now lived through a few years of declining economic prospects, especially in Calgary. Nevertheless, the average score was 7.5 out of 10. Your optimism clearly shone through in these results.

Even though there’s a strong sense of optimism about our sector’s immediate future, leaders also have a range of important issues that keep them awake at night, including funding, governance, and policy/government relations.

I’m pleased to report we’re already moving on some of the suggested ways we could better serve our member organizations. Next month we launch the Ascent leadership development program for emerging leaders, while further opportunities to collectively address cross-cutting issues are also in the works—watch for your invitation to attend a small roundtable discussion with other nonprofit leaders to discuss the issues identified below and how we can work together to build adaptive capacity in our sector.

Results of CCVO Members’ Survey

Top ways executive leaders or members of their team have engaged with CCVO over the past year: